


The fight for you is all I've ever known

by WaterSeraphim



Category: Magic: The Gathering (Card Game)
Genre: Art, Blood and Violence, Canon Compliant, Feels, Fluff and Angst, Hurt/Comfort, M/M, Missing Scene
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2019-11-13
Updated: 2019-11-13
Packaged: 2021-01-29 21:13:02
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Graphic Depictions Of Violence
Chapters: 1
Words: 2,887
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/21416749
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/WaterSeraphim/pseuds/WaterSeraphim
Summary: Tomik had to be strong for Ral.or, the scene after Tomik leaves to go find a healer for Ral in War of the Spark: Forsaken
Relationships: Tomik Vrona/Ral Zarek
Comments: 1
Kudos: 27





	The fight for you is all I've ever known

**Author's Note:**

> I had to write this for therapy after reading this damn book. I hope this brings you some sort of healing (like Ral) as well.
> 
> unbeta'd any mistakes are my own

The time it took to procure a healer was much too short for Tomik to compartmentalize his emotions. 

As soon as he stepped out of the bedroom his tears came like a flood. It hurt, his heart felt like it was being torn from his chest. Seeing Ral like that made him want to fall apart. He couldn’t, not in front of him when he was clearly in so much pain. Tomik had to be brave. 

He had to be brave.

_ Oh gods, Ral… _

Tomik had to catch himself on the steps leading to their apartment. He needed to run, needed to get help. Ral was dying. He was dying and he was alone and _ gods. My Ral… please. _

He wasn’t a praying sort of man. No one in the Syndicate really was, but in that moment Tomik was begging whoever could hear him that Ral would make it through this. 

His boots were loud against the streets of Dogsrun. There were a handful of healers in their neighborhood so he ran to the nearest one. His breaths were choking out in harsh gasps and his head felt like it was full of fog. All of the pain he should have been feeling was numbed by his grief. 

And what was his pain compared to the agony Ral was in? 

He’d never seen Ral cry before.

The healer took his panicked garbled speech as the plea for help it was. She grabbed a satchel of supplies and followed Tomik back to the apartment. He must have looked out of it because he hadn’t even broached the topic of payment and yet she agreed to help. 

Ral was where he left him, his blood staining the bed, _ their bed. _He gasped when Tomik returned and made a weak sound that almost sounded like relief. It only made Tomik want to cry again, did Ral think he was leaving him? That he wouldn’t make it back in time?

Tomik wanted to hold him so desperately. To kiss all the wounds away and tell him how much he loved him over and over until his voice was gone.

The healer hurriedly laid her tools out on the nightstand and began treating the worst of the wounds. Her immediate attention went to the blood in Ral’s lungs. The cracks in his ribs that may puncture vulnerable organs if left ignored. Using a small device she healed Ral’s broken nose as straight as she could. 

Then when the most grievous damage had been cleaned away she began scraping the blood soaking into Rals face. Even with her gentle touch he was crying out and gritting his teeth in pain. 

The gashes on his body were just as bad, littering almost every exposed inch of skin with scrapes and bruises. Tomik felt so useless, so pathetic sitting there watching Ral writhing and struggling to breathe. Ral needed him and he could do _ nothing. _

In an attempt to carry a conversation the healer asked about how they had met. How they liked the neighborhood, what Ral and Tomik did for a living. To give her some credit, she only jumped a little when Tomik admitted that the man she was helping was the Izzet Guildmaster.

The heavy tension in the room couldn’t be relieved by small talk.

Tomik tried his best to respond to her, but all of his thoughts were so focused on _ Ral. _He couldn’t think of anything else. His replies were confusing and barely comprehensible. For a man trained in the art of conversation he was completely at a loss for words.

When the worst of the mess was wiped from Ral’s skin the rest of the healing magic was introduced.

Ral’s red rimmed eyes met his for the briefest of moments before clenching shut. Tomik’s heart just about collapsed at the sight of tears sliding down his purpled and bloodied face.

Tomik gripped the crimson stained sheets in frustration. His voice full of anguish he whispered, “I’m so sorry, Ral.”

A small sob escaped the injured man’s throat.

“You did it and… and you’re going to be okay now. I’m so proud of you. I-I…” Tomik had the pause in order to stop himself from falling apart again. “I love you so much. “

He didn’t meet Tomik’s gaze.

That sent the tears flowing again despite his wish to stay strong for _ him _. “Ral… “ 

Seemingly satisfied with her work the healer backed away and looked between the two of them with concern. “I don’t know what this black substance is. We have to remove it.”

Tomik nodded somberly and wiped away the wetness from his cheeks. Even after being healed Ral looked so defeated and vulnerable. Dark ugly bruises puffed his face and cheeks like someone had been trying to beat him to a pulp. 

The healer grabbed a cloth from her kit and wet it with some sort of disinfectant before offering it up to Tomik. He blinked slowly, staring at the fabric in confusion.

“I figured you would want to take care of him.”

“Yes… yes of course I do.” He hesitantly removed the cloth from her hands and turned to Ral. He didn't care if the bed was covered in blood or if Ral looked like hells as long as he was safe. Wounds would heal, he would be alright.

Tomik didn’t know if he was trying to convince himself of the same thing.

He slid in beside his man and looked down at him with a forced smile. With the worst of the damaged healed he couldn’t stop himself from placing a chaste kiss to Ral’s cheek. Then one to his nose and another to his forehead and one more to the corner of his mouth. He wished he could be much more thorough with his displays of affection but Ral’s lips were still angrily swollen and he wasn’t interested in hurting him any more than what he’d already gone through. 

It was strange being able to do something like this in front of a witness. After so long hiding their feelings from the world it was a relief not having to lie anymore. He didn’t have to bribe the healer to never mention what she’d seen. He didn’t have to worry about what it would do to Ral’s reputation. He could love freely, as much as he pleased and gods be damned if anyone was about to stop him now.

When Ral finally spoke it was ragged and gravely and carrying a deep sadness. “I hate seeing you worry about me. Seeing me like this...” 

Tomik sighed and placed his hand over the sticky mess that was Ral’s hair. With some skillful maneuvering he managed to wrap an arm around Ral’s bruised head in some semblance of an embrace. “It means a lot that you trust me enough to let me see you hurt.” He exhaled and leaned his head on top of Ral’s, likely smearing his cheek full of that black substance. “You don’t have to be ashamed. 

Ral stayed silent.

With a heavy heart Tomik returned to the task at hand, wiping away the slick from his face. He untangled himself from his man and got to work scrubbing at the strange black ooze so firmly stuck to Ral’s hair. It turned out to be a losing battle. None of it was getting on the cloth and all the scrubbing had Ral grimacing in pain. 

“This isn’t coming out.” Tomik tried to keep his voice level but desperation was making him frown. All of the frustration was piling together into this one _ little _ thing. If he couldn’t even help Ral feel better how good of a lover was he? _ Dammit. _

The healer who had remained silent and unobtrusive out of respect for the two men piped in. “Perhaps a different solution?”

“Chemical or literal?” Ral mumbled.

She shrugged, “whichever works.”

“I don’t know about that.” Tomik felt a bit helpless looking at the slick goo plastering Ral’s hair. “It’s like a tub of glue was poured on his head.”

“Then perhaps it would be best to simply remove the hair it’s attached to?” She suggested.

That grabbed Ral’s attention. “My hair?” He made a queasy face as if the very thought was making him feel ill.

“You’ll look handsome without hair.” Tomik stated in an attempt at bolstering Ral’s otherwise stormy mood.

He scoffed and gave Tomik and incredulous look. “Really?”

“You don’t think so?”

Ral gave a weak chuckle that was more like a cough than anything. “I think I’m going to look like a hairless rat.”

“You’re still you.” Tomik adjusted his glasses and offered a shy smile. “The hair doesn’t matter. That’s not what I fell in love with.”

Ral broke out into another series of coughs, curling into Tomik’s side and shuddering as his breath escaped him. Despite the healer’s efforts not all wounds could be mended with magic, especially ones on the inside. His coughs were wet and brought up splatters of more blood into his hand.

The sight of even more red was wearing Tomik thin. He had to be brave. He couldn’t show Ral how scared he was.

When the fit was over Ral simply nodded and breathed, “do it.”

The healer silently passed an electric razor and traded it for the towel. Tomik snaked his arm under Ral’s shoulders and gave him room to prop himself up on Tomik. For a second he could pretend that Ral hadn’t almost never returned to him. How close had it been, just one more punch? One more beating and the love of his life would have rotted away across the multiverse? Tomik wouldn’t have gotten the chance to say goodbye or tell Ral how much he meant to him or…

_ The hair. Focus. _

He pressed the switch on the razor and gently guided it across Ral’s crown of matted hair. The room was silent beyond the steady buzz of the electric motor and Ral’s ragged breathing. Slowly chunks of hair were falling onto the blood soaked sheets and scattering across the bed. Ral was leaning into the hold, his puffy eyes slowly succumbing to weariness.

The bathroom would have been a better place to do this, but knowing how he had to lift Ral onto the mattress reminded him of how impossible that option was. The sheets were already ruined anyway. Tomik would just bundle it all up and toss it in the garbage afterwards. 

It was a relief in a way to be able to hold Ral, to groom him and feel his lover falling asleep in his arms. If only the circumstances had been better.

Meanwhile the healer was cleaning her tools, tossing away ruined supplies in a special container for medical waste and wiping up blood stains from the table and the trail leading through the room. She didn’t question why the trail started in the middle of the floor or how Ral had even been injured in the first place. Most people knew that Ral was a planeswalker by now anyway.

The ooze on Ral’s hair, whatever it was, luckily hadn’t seeped onto his skin or gotten on anything more important. When his lover’s head was clean and shaven Tomik cut the power to the razor and patted the short hairs appreciatively. Ral gave a quiet and sleepy pleased sound as he nestled closer into Tomik’s side. 

Ral’s purple and bruised cheek pressed against his own. “How do I look? Am I still sexy?” 

The healer snorted from across the bedroom. 

Tomik met Ral’s ridiculously intense gaze and failed to stifle a breathy laugh. His glasses flopped forward on his nose and he hunched over and tried to stem his amusement for the sake of Ral’s self confidence. 

Ral grumbled and fixed Tomik’s golden frames with his index finger while he waited for a response. “That bad?”

“Oh absolutely _ awful. _I’m going to have to hide you here and keep you all to myself.” Tomik smiled and gently lowered Ral back down onto the mattress. He stood and wrestled the soiled sheets from under his man’s dead weight and bundled it into a ball before dropping it onto the floor. “But really, you look fine. Even better once the wounds heal.”

“You don’t need to lie to make me feel better,” Ral huffed and went to run a hand through his hair then froze. His face twisted into a frown before he dropped his arm still fizzing with static back onto their bed. Tomik pretended he didn’t notice.

Tomik mock pouted and crossed his arms, jutting his hip to the side. “I am _ not _lying!” 

Ral managed a small smirk. “You really think I’m handsome like this? My face looks like a giant plum.”

“Well…I,” he stammered, a warmth spreading across his face. “Of course I do! You’re always handsome.”

“If you said it, it must be true.” Ral gave a big sappy grin and blew Tomik a kiss. He brought his hand to his hair again but now rubbed at the burn scar cutting across his forehead. He groaned, “Maybe this won’t be so bad with you around.”

Tomik’s heart was likely beating loud enough for the healer to hear from her position by the door. Ral was never very open about his feelings, it had taken so long for him to even confess that the attraction he felt was more than physical. Meanwhile Tomik had been swept up by a tide of emotions since the night they met. Hearing Ral give so freely was just another sign of how far they’d come. Everything they’d been through had only brought them closer. 

“You’ve got me,” Tomik agreed softly. His feet carried him to where Ral was resting his face against his favorite pillow. Tomik stretched out his arm, rubbing the short rough hairs on the top of his head. “They say rubbing a bald head is good luck.” Ral scrunched up his nose and chuckled.

Before Ral could respond another voice was cutting through the quiet bedroom. “Excuse me ...masters? I’ll be leaving now.” The healer curtsied and bowed her head, her satchel strapped across her shoulder. She was located with one foot out the bedroom door like she was about to bolt. Tomik didn’t blame her, she must have felt awkward watching the two of them.

“Without payment?” Tomik tilted his head quizzically. It was an alien concept for the _ Permanent Acting Guildmaster of the Orzhov Syndicate _. “We have plenty of zinos, really- “

The woman practically jumped in shock. It wasn’t about being capable of paying then. “Oh no! For a hero? I couldn’t charge you. That wouldn’t be right.” 

“Hero?” Ral mumbled from the bed.

“Of course! Master Zarek you saved Ravnica! It’s an honor to meet you and…” she turned to Tomik and struggled for a moment. “Master Vrona?”

Tomik inclined his head with a polite smile. “And your name?” He would have felt guilty for not asking before but given the circumstances he could forgive himself.

“Marel.”

“Thank you Miss Marel. I don’t know what I would have done without your help.” Tomik inhaled sharply. The violent memory of how Ral had arrived resurfaced making his emotions swell up in his chest again. Ral was better now, he would be better. He was safe and healed and _ alive _ and it was all Tomik could ask for at the moment.

Marel curtsied again and then left their apartment. Tomik would be leaving a generous sum at her office the next morning in thanks. The Orzhov always paid their debts.

“So I’m a hero now?” Ral raised an eyebrow. “I haven’t been gone _ that _ long.”

Tomik put on his best oblivious face. “Word travels fast?”

“And you wouldn’t have had anything to do with that would you?”

“Of course not,” Tomik lied. 

Ral laughed which turned into more coughing. At least there was no blood this time. “What did you say about me?”

He brought the backside of his hand to Ral’s cheek in a sweet caress, wary of any bruises he might disrupt. Despite the pain he may have been in, Ral simply leaned into the touch and closed his eyes. “The truth.”

Ral took some time to ponder that statement. “Krokt… a hero…” he breathed in disbelief. 

Tomik smiled and slowly removed his hand guiding Ral’s head back down to the pillows beneath him. “You should get some rest. I’ll be back after I check on Kaya, okay?”

“That sounds really good right now. Krokt I am tired,” he yawned and drifted to sleep. 

Tomik didn’t leave immediately. Instead he chose to study Ral’s slumbering face and reflect on his thoughts. They would certainly have a lot to talk about later. He knew something wasn’t quite right, something happened with Tezzeret that deeply hurt Ral. He was never one to take a beating and roll over, he was firey and spirited and never stopped trying. It was one of the many things Tomik admired in him. 

That wasn’t this Ral. He was quiet and scared and utterly defeated and Tomik just wanted him to be alright. He’d been through so much the last few months in defense of Ravnica he deserved to be _ happy _for once. 

He placed a kiss to his lover’s forehead and headed back to Orzhova. 


End file.
